Just ~$5-11 shy of the cheapest these tents have been according to 3 camels
Can't vouch for the tent, but reviews say they're good and at this price, makes them pretty good for anyone who can still go camping.
Not sure how long this price will stay around for, but being Amazon algorithm I expect it to be expired on posting.
CamelCamelCamel.
Yeah, good for camping in my backyard.
Good for covid isolation tent
Oh. Great idea! Purchased one now on your recommendation! Now… what is your address?
Great price, shame not instant up
I have the instant up - big bastard when folded.
same here, 10 person instant up, its a big bertha heavy tent
Likewise, but full fly, considerably more stable and much better materials.
Damn straight. Just wait until you reach middle age.
Why does the fly only go half way down??
to let the farts escape
Half way down is for tents designed for milder weather. If it rains, then you can get some water seeping inside with this style.
All the way down can handle a bit more bad weather and they cost a bit more.
I think you are right with typical 2x layer of tent material, but if you look at this design, under the fly on one side is only flyscreen material so if water seeps through the top layer it will just go through the flyscreen. So I think its almost like a single layer of tent material when in wet conditions.
I've only ever seen those tents in the USA.
I don't think its very Australia friendly.
what do you expect, it to keep rain out? geez - fussy customer :)
Thanks OP
Note if you end up buying this tent, shine a torch light at the seams to see if there are light leakage, because this will indicate the seam is not sealed or stitch threads haven't bind the panels fully
If there are, whether there are water leakage will depend on the direction of splashes, just keep an eye and test it first ;)
Have this tent and it's decent, beats kmart etc for similar pricing.
Is it hot? Doesn't look like it has much ventilation
Good cheapy for the kids night out on the lawn. Wouldn't go further that.
https://www.coleman.com/tents/6-person-tents/6-person-dark-r…
Bought two from the last deals, good tent
I typically buy a 6 person tent to comfortably fit 2.
Coleman is good my instant tent from 10yrs ago Is still fine 🙂
are they good for going to the beach? easy to open and fold?
So no good for rainy conditions?
These sort of tents are best for backyard camping only. They don't stand up to anything but the lightest rain. Similarly they are no good with any wind. Seams are not sealed, half fly, the cheapest floor and poles you can get. If you had 5+ mm of rain fall you would not be wanting to stay in this tent.
Thanks, not for me then :)
So are Kmart tents better than this? I have used the Kmart 6 person tent in heavy rain and winds near beach and has been just fine.
K-mart tent should last a couple of trips before needing replacement. This then should last 5 years before it starts to fall apart.
@frugalferret: I have a little Kmart "3 man" that I got ten years ago and still use for myself four or five times a year when I do a local car camp with mates ( also known as plan B at the end of the night).
There are so many variables.
1) Ensure you have a full fly on the tent that reaches the ground
2) Ensure all the seams on the fly are seam sealed. This is really important. Water will permeate through stitching and other holes and drip onto the inner tent and then into your tent if that is not the case
3) Ensure the floor isn't made out of cheap polyethylene like this one. Look for tents with tub floors made of strong seam sealed waterproof fabric
4) Look for tents that have good ventilation between the outer fly and inner tent. The more waterproof your outer fly sheet is, the more it will collect condensation on the inner face of the fabric. This leads to the same issues of water dripping into your inner tent. When its raining and you are in the tent, make sure ventilation is setup well
5) Make sure you use mats/beds or something to raise your sleeping bag off the floor - to avoid condensation forming underneath
6) Ensure you pitch your tent fully and properly, so often you'll see tents pitched in the rain with the guide lines loose, allowing the fly come in to contact with the inner tent and allow water to soak through
Unfortunately, to get a good quality tent you need to spend $$$ and they are often much smaller than the cheap 'family' tents. So many times I've been out camping and a storm has come through in the night and when I get up in the morning, all the neighbouring tents and families have left. I love camping in wet stormy conditions if you do it in a safe manner with the correct equipment.
Winds will pull down nearly every 'family' tent I've seen. Their sides are just too flat and vertical. While that is great for the occupants comfort in perfect weather, its no good for any wind. You need a tent with a much lower curved profile to handle decent winds in comfort.
You can waterproof and seam seal just about any tent fly yourself but its hard to fix/improve a tent with a cheap polyethylene floor to a satisfactory level.
I've got quality tents which are 20 years old and still in great condition after years of use (a few repairs here and there). So spending > $600+ upfront can pay off over the years if you have the patience to approach it that way. Otherwise cheap tents you will be replacing each year with any decent use and you will be unhappy with their wet weather / wind performance.
@airtime: To be fair, if it’s windy and raining then there won’t be much to do at your campsite so most people, families especially, will probably go home after a day anyway. Bombproof family tents are not always needed.
@fantacular: It depends on your take on camping.
Agree that lots of families spend a good time in and around the campground. But for me and my kids, the campground is just a place to sleep and eat. Activity is normally outside the campground. There is lots to do even when its raining. Perhaps its my heritage but I love to be outdoors in the rain.
Good quality and sturdy tents have been essential for us because a lot of camping has been in NZ. Oh how I dream for the end of lockdown.
I'm more of a rivers and mountains person than a beach and ocean person (except for sailing).
@fufufu: My goto tents have always been Macpac. Mainly because of access to spare parts in AU/NZ. I love my Olympus and also have the Minaret.
Strangely though, in recent years its been harder to get the good Macpac tents from AU stores.
There are bunch other excellent tent manufacturers from Europe and the US but its harder to get their tents here (have to ship from overseas = $$ as bulky) and spare parts are hard to get.
I've got a new MSR Elixir 4 tent for family camping that I am excited to try out once we have the freedom to do so. It's a bit of a compromise, 3 season , US/European seasons, not AU seasons , but it is much roomier.
Spend a bit more up-front and look after your tent and they will last for 10-20 years. Make sure you regularly seam seal, every season I re-spray fly outers with waterproofing. Always use a tent 'footprint' to protect the floor. Always carefully inspect where you are pitching your tent and remove ALL debris, sticks, stone, etc. from under the floor to prevent punctures.
@fantacular: I tend to look at it different, what can't we do?
We cycle, fish, hike, river boating, etc. all in the rain. Make sure you have the appropriate clothing and shell layers and its a lot of fun being out in more challenging conditions. I love hiking in the rain but I may be a bit weird in that regard :-). The patter of rain on your outer shell hood, squish of ground under foot, stopping to cook and have warm tea, etc. Feeling comfortable in poor weather conditions is a buzz - like you are beating the elements. I love it.
@airtime: That's an awesome post/list you've provided - thanks. You didn't mention windows for ventilation - how important are they?
@gomango: Tents with windows tend to be more often found in models designed for family holiday park camping. Not so much in backcountry tents. Main reason is windows mean 4 seams for water to get in. Similarly if zippers are used on the windows.
None of my tents have windows. I've never felt like I needed windows. They do have large vestibule entry doors which can be opened up to see out and also have screens to keep the bugs out.
The downside to that is if your idea of camping is spending a lot of time in the tent during the day, then its going to be uncomfortable in the hot Australian summer months without windows and ventilation. We hardly spend any time in the tent during the day and also tend to not camp during the hotter months - just my preference.
These things are always a compromise, you can get a tent which is great for backcountry, rain / snow and wind but that tent won't be great for beach side camping in the 35+'C days in the Australian summer.
For beachside, holiday park summer camping where you have your car/SUV with you, definitely investigate one of the better quality Coleman instant up tents. Those behemoth 8+ person ones that look like the Taj Mahal :-) . With all the guy lines appropriately staked, they look like they'd be great for summer family camping. They are also fairly cheap - about $600 or so.
@airtime: Thanks again - great answer. I noticed that all the hard core tents were windowless and wondered why. I like to have a smaller tent that is reasonably quick up and down as my daughter and tend to like to tour and move avery 2-3 days. I found the Coleman Hooligan 4p tent on amazon for $78 which sounds like a low end version of what you describe for cooler weather. Perhaps with the tent in the OP I'd have 2 tents and all bases covered for $144.
I have had several Coleman tents & shelters which have had great waterproofing and varying wind resistance. Think Coleman has some good and some bad. Wouldn't rule it out because it's a pop up, unless you mean you have tried this line of tents and it's been rubbish? One of my longest lasting tents was a $20 pop up from anaconda. Brilliant in heavy rain and storms.
Have found adding extra spring guy ropes does wonders in storms. You can also buy waterproofing spray which can add to the life of your tent/canopy but haven't needed. I find the worst thing here for tents is the heat for both cheap and expensive tents - dissolves the seam glue and disintegrates any exposed loops. My worst buy was an instant up shelter with the canopy under the frame, which meant that the loops holding it to the frame were exposed to the sun and lasted less than 6 months. It was a tension system and so after losing a few loops the whole thing came down and it was impossible to repair. Pretty sure it was a Coleman lol. Their instant up tents are great though, have had the 6p for many years and it's lasted through lots of very rough weather with no issues at all
Coleman's "Elite WeatherMaster" range look pretty good. If I was going to go for an affordable family tent with standing height, I'd go for that.
Can anyone comment if I use it for the beach? Or might be too hot? I was hoping the dark might keep cool inside.
Thank you!
science says dark makes it hot..
light colors better for beach
I wouldn't use it at the beach as a sun shelter as if you are at the beach its likely to be a hot day and generally you want good breeze under the shelter so a closed up tent will likely get quite hot (even if you open up the side windows). That is my experience anyway and why I ended up getting a pop up gazebo instead for the beach.
Seems annoying to set up at the beach? Don't you want something quicker and easier? Something open on one side?
Thanks got one for the kids
Really great tents, have the 10p Instant up and the darkness is amazing in the mornings!
Don't you find the problem isn't the sun, but the birds?
I think it depends on what you are used to. I am used to a relatively dark room and have lots of birds and 2 dogs that make noise. For me, the dark room tent made a huge difference. Even bigger difference for the kids, boys slept all the way through, even as my mates around me got up and made noise for 3 hours or more before we rolled out.
Yeah the difference was a 5:30am wake up compared to a standard 7:00am wake up with my 2 year old!
Coleman Instant-Up Darkrooms are an entirely different line. Not a lot in common between those models and these…
Ordered 4P, thanks OP
Is the dark room tech only on the fly? So only half dark room? Or is the entire tent made from darkened fabric?
Ordered 4P, plan to only use in the summer so rain isn't really an issue. Thanks OP.
It doesn't rain in summer? You must be very very lucky :))
Perth averages less than 15mm of rain in each summer month, with most of it coming in predictable weather events. So, as long as you are willing to can plans in the case of possible bad weather, you would be fine with this.
I have no idea tbh, normally just stay inside and refresh ozbargain through summer.
isolate in tent covid free, just get malaria or dengue fever instead
From the 3 camels info, launch price was around $ 109.9 for about 6 months. Current price is still higher than launch price so does not look like a bargain.
When making recommendations some people seem to overlook 'fit for purpose'. YES this may not be the best tent for year round camping BUT there are many people out there (e.g me) that will ONLY go camping if there's no forecast of rain. It can be quite confidently predicted in most states during Summer. I've camped dozens of times and never once rained. I've also cancelled a few trips because of the forecast. For me it's not about just staying dry in a tent, I just don't like camping in the wet. Of course many others are different which is why it's important to take FFP into consideration rather than blanket statements.
There are plenty of unlucky situations where you might get a forecast for no rain, and it rains. It generally won't happen for 1 or maybe 2 nights of camping though.
Either way its still silly to buy a tent like this for camping as full fly tents are cheap and they are useful for more then just rain.
Its also quite silly to cancel camping when its going to rain for 10 minutes of your entire 2-3 day trip.
10 min rain is different to rainiy for hours…if it does rain i tend to just drive back.
2 & 6 person in stock currently, 4 person 1-2 months dispatch time.